A young Black man seen in a viral video being punched, pulled out of his car and slammed to the ground by police has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit, alleging systemic brutality and cover-ups within the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO).

William McNeil , a 22-year-old student at Livingston College , joined lawyers Ben Crump and Harry Daniels this week to announce the lawsuit against Sheriff T.K. Waters , deputies Donald Bowers and D. Miller , and the city of Jacksonville.

The suit claims both excessive force in McNeil’s arrest and unconstitutional policies that enabled the violence, alleging Fourth and 14th Amendment violations.

It seeks damages for McNeil’s physical and psychological injuries, and injunctive relief to change JSO’s policies on use-of-force and

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